NE Wyoming News

Congresswoman Harriet Hageman has joined forces with Senators Mike Lee and Mitt Romney, as well as Representatives John Curtis, Celeste Maloy, Blake Moore, and Burgess Owens in filing an amicus brief. This brief urges the Supreme Court to consider the case of Utah v U.S., which challenges the federal government's ownership of unappropriated land in Utah.

Representative Hageman expressed her concerns about federal land ownership, stating, “The federal burden in the West infringes on our sovereignty and undermines our equality with the States, all in direct violation of the Constitution. This ownership serves no purpose other than to inflict bad management policies which lock up lands from productive use." She emphasized that although this brief specifically addresses Utah's situation, it could have implications for other western states like Wyoming.

The brief argues several key points:

- The Constitution and subsequent federal law assign disputes between states and the federal government to the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. The court does not have discretion to refuse such cases.

- Even if discretion were possible, this case presents significant constitutional questions concerning state sovereignty and requires judicial review.

- The court should mandate that control over its land be returned to Utah.

- Federal possession of vast areas of unappropriated land in Utah limits state powers like taxation and eminent domain regulation.

- Retention of these lands denies western states equal statehood and representation. It also places an undue focus on federal land management issues for congressional delegations from these states.